Monks providing loans

From Thairath, November 16, 2017
Left, a tourist: I read the newspaper about Thai monks providing loans to the people. Doesn’t it violate the monk’s principles?
Middle, Thai man: No, because the monks want to support the government’s policy.
Tourist: What’s the policy?
Left, Thai man: Provide loans to people for shopping to boost the country’s economy.

[Refers to the shopping tax break campaign launched by the junta to boost the country’s spending and stimulate the economy. This news is combined with a report about an abbot in the provinces who provided a loan service. The provincial monk association denied that this action violated the monk’s principles as there was no specific rule prohibiting monks from loaning money. This raised eyebrows as the abbott’s loans seemed clearly inappropriate.]